


Surprise!

by kreamhyuck



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Crack, Alternate Universe - Ghosts, Comedy, Happr Birthday to our Huang Renjun!, Horror, Implied Relationships, Implied norenmin, Kun appears!, M/M, NCT Dream Ensemble-centric, Na Jaemin-centric, Renjun Birthday Special, implied markhyuck, norenmin are ghost hunter vloggers, vlog au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-23
Updated: 2019-03-23
Packaged: 2019-11-28 12:45:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,714
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18208493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kreamhyuck/pseuds/kreamhyuck
Summary: “Let’s find hyu- AH!”It was the sound of metal hitting the floor. Their eyes watch in horror as the utensils that were once scattered above the kitchen island, went flying down, hitting the porcelain tiles so loudly that Jaemin’s ears started hurting. This in turn made Renjun into a running mess, dragging the two boys with him outside the cursed room to nowhere in particular. Jaemin and Jeno are as agitated, their feet running faster with adrenaline, as they let their bodies get dragged with Renjun’s hold.Maybe they shouldn’t have let Renjun drag them after all.





	Surprise!

**Author's Note:**

> It's unbeta-ed, and this was a bit different from my usual writing style. Anyway, Happy Birthday to our Injunnie!!

“Jaemin, you’re a genius!”

Renjun said it with enthusiasm as he jumps up and down in delight. It’s always refreshing to see Renjun be hyped up towards anything and Jaemin swears he only wanted to see Renjun smile, nothing more, nothing less. Smiling from ear to ear, Jaemin locks his eyes with Jeno who was giving him an unamused look which the boy has been doing for the past couple of days, but Jaemin only ever shrugged. He doesn’t understand why Jeno thinks _this_ is a bad idea, when all their friends deliberately agreed to his suggestion, taking responsibility to parts of his perfect plan.

_“Nana, I really don’t think we should let Chenle and Jisung plan this out.”_

 Jeno whispered to him with obvious worry laced on his tone. It made Jaemin think for a mere second until he hears another familiar squealing, he knows is unique to Chenle, and when Jaemin saw how he and Jisung are celebrating for _finally_ being trusted to a bigger plan, Jaemin’s heart fattens up. He won’t take it away from them.

“ _Then who will? Those two have free time, and we don’t. They’ll manage, Jen. They’re grown ups already.”_

The plan was — the usual ghost hunting vlog, Jaemin and Renjun acting as hosts, with their subscriber’s favorite guests, Mark and Donghyuck, on a _famous_ haunted mansion located at the suburbs for Renjun’s special birthday episode. What Renjun doesn’t know, was that the mansion is Chenle’s parent’s old ancestral house which was left without being catered leading to its present condition: rustic towering gates with no locks, grassy meadow vegetated with different types of greeneries that Jaemin doesn’t take note of, paint falling off the dirty walls, and some broken windows at the second floor. Their group arranged a surprise event at the mansion’s rooftop where Chenle reassured them that the building is still safe to use despite the degrading interior. Jaemin wasn’t sure why he agreed but maybe the picture Chenle showed to him the night before didn’t really showcased the present situation of the said mansion. Walking through the road towards to where the mansion is, Jaemin felt a breeze of cold air passing through his cheeks and once they managed to open the gates, maybe he was imagining it, he felt a gentle tap just at the top of his shoulder blades which he didn’t took concern of.

“Is this safe?” Donghyuck asked so softly, his voice was disappearing through thin air. They have walked passed the gates and are now stepping on a pool of mud towards the gigantic wooden front door. There’s a staircase just before it, too moldy that Jaemin was afraid they might slip if they weren’t being careful. On Jaemin’s periphery, he can see the intertwining of Donghyuck and Mark’s fingers. Jeno, who was manhandling the camera took notice and heftily zoomed in. They know how they’re subscribers ship the hell out of their guests, and of course, of themselves too.

“Be careful.” Mark manages to voice out, a crack on his voice lingered in the quiet air. It was Renjun who broke the timid atmosphere as he croaks a laugh where he managed to get the attention to himself.

“What?” He said, a brow raised on Mark’s offended orbs.

* 

“It’s locked.” Renjun said as he inspects the doorknob one more time, pulling it with great effort but to no avail. Jaemin curses under his breath, worried that they might not be able to go inside. This time, he tried to inspect the knobs, but they really aren’t bulging.

“Maybe we should look for another entryway?” Jeno suggested, while the rest of them nod in response. Jaemin made a mental note to scold both Chenle and Jisung later for locking Renjun out of his own surprise birthday party. They were about to leave the vicinity of the door when they heard a loud clicking of metal and the door creaking just slightly open, which made their heads whip in motion towards the now unmoving object. Jeno has his mouth slightly ajar while Renjun wowed in amusement. Never did they encounter in any of their vlogs this kind of development and even though it’s as simple as a door creaking open, it made the fire in Renjun’s eyes glimmer in gold and Jaemin might be a little guilty inside, thinking this was all part of Chenle and Jisung’s plan to make the surprise even more unforgettable, he still dwelled in the fact that as of now, they’re making Renjun bustle with excitement.

“Let’s go inside!” Renjun delightedly skips through the front door, his back disappearing into the bleak darkness of the inside of the mansion.

“What was that about?” Donghyuck whisper-yelled, his face turning paler and paler at every passing second. Jeno chuckled in response, still focused on his job at camera works to stay as silent and unopinionated as he can, but the vibrations of his stifling laughter affected his hold, resulting on a shaky take.

“Junnie!” Jaemin calls once they’re inside, the darkness blinding them. They heard loud footsteps coming towards their direction, and as their eyes adjusted in the dark, the majestic view of the mansion comes appearing before them. There’s a humungous flight of stairs decorating the back wall, covered in what seems like a royal blue carpet in now dull gold specs of gothic imprints, a dangling case of chandelier is floating above their heads, where the lights coming out from a broken windowpane they saw just before coming in refracts in beautiful rainbow streaks, and there’s dust _everywhere_ covering and hovering every inch of the space.

“Injun?” Jaemin calls out again, the camera focusing on him.

“Nana! Here!” Renjun’s voice resonated in their ears. It was coming out from the right side of the mansion where Jaemin raises an eyebrow at. What were the footsteps he heard just a minute ago? Jaemin briskly walked towards to where they heard Renjun calling, Donghyuck, Mark, and Jeno, following right behind him.

*

“Ughh.”

“Hyuck, if you grunt one more time, I swear I’ll chokehold you.” Renjun warns the younger as he tries another call but to no avail. The network reception inside the mansion is _that_ bad.

They found Renjun in the mansion’s kitchen, ogling on the rather brand-new set of utensils sprawled above the kitchen island. It made Jaemin’s heart jump into his throat, knowing well enough who’s responsible for the said mess. He nervously laughed his way to Renjun who had his brows creased into a straight line, as he hears Jeno curse quietly enough for Renjun not to notice. There’s remnants of plastics and napkins on the floor, and suspicious footprints marked with mud.

“So, will anyone tell me what’s going on?”

“Uhm…”

At this point, Jeno had his camera turned off due to Renjun’s demand. They were now standing before him, on a straight line, his eyes prying at their orbs, gutting out the answer he wants. The lights were turned on, as Renjun discovered the outlets are all working properly. But it was still dim as the led lights aren’t as bright as they should be.

“I’m not dumb, so tell me, what were you guys planning?” Renjun starts again, this time, with more conviction on his tone. They look at each other’s eyes, and Jaemin can see how Mark was fidgeting, his lips pursuing a pout. Jeno sighed, and started:

“We were supposed to scare you a bit,”

Renjun glared at him, the eyes of mischief imploring towards Jeno’s nervous orbs. Jaemin sure was lucky it wasn’t him whom started explaining things.

“But! It’s because we were planning a surprise birthday party for you.”

Jaemin nods, his own lips pouty. It was supposed to be a perfect plan and all, but Chenle and Jisung must mess it up. But then again, Jaemin didn’t really had high expectations since Renjun can be perceptive if he wants to, and the older will eventually catch up on things. What he didn’t expect was to be blown off this early.

They watch Renjun on an excruciatingly long time before the older’s face soften, his eyes crinkling up to half moons as he gives them a small knowing smile and said, “You guys are so soft.”

*

“So, Chenle and Jisung are actually waiting at the rooftop?” Renjun asked while they finally trudged their way out of the stuffy kitchen. Jaemin hums at him, his heart beat never at ease, not at when Renjun’s merely inches away from him, chuckling on a tone so low, as it sends shiver down Jaemin’s spine.

Just as they were out of the door, Jeno broke the comfortable silence of their group. “There’s too many footsteps.” Jeno said as he opens his camera out of habit. He slouched down and focused his camera on the floor, inspecting the muddy footprints that were probably from both Chenle and Jisung and some might even from them. This took Renjun’s attention away from Jaemin and went back to look for himself on what’s Jeno’s currently filming.

“Huh, weird.”

Renjun says, his finger dragging along the remnants of the dried-up mud. Jaemin went back, walking past Donghyuck and Mark who were pressed against each other’s shoulder, Donghyuck claiming he’s too afraid he might get lost. Jeno was right, there _are_ too many footprints. Erase that, there are footprints _everywhere._ And as Jaemin tries to think of the possibilities as to why Chenle and Jisung had decided to cover the whole floor with mud, they hear a rather loud banging of something against the floor just above them. This made Donghyuck scream in alarm, his hold tightening on Mark’s shoulders. Renjun was startled as well as he deliberately stood up from his position, freezing with wide eyes as they wait for the banging to stop. Jaemin met Renjun’s eyes, both have their jaws hanging and sporting an expression of surprise.

“Guys, let’s just go-“

As if on cue, the lights went out, cutting Donghyuck’s request as he continues to scream his lungs out. Jaemin figured with the dying pitch of Donghyuck’s perfect falsetto, the boy might have started running away. It was then confirmed with Mark’s _“Hyuck!”_ as they hear their footsteps retreating from where they are. When the lights went back, _thank god,_ the only people in the room are him, Renjun, and Jeno.

“Fuck, was that also part of your plans?” Renjun asked, his hand reaching out for Jaemin’s sleeve while he tugs Jeno with his other hand by his wrist, too tight that it seems like Renjun was trying to cut off Jeno’s blood circulation.

“I don’t think so. Chenle said they only hung up fake rubber heads on the second floor because that’s the only thing they can manage.” Jeno said, his pitch questionably higher.

“I mean, maybe they compensated with the situation?” Jaemin tries but his voice was too shaky that made him and the other two laugh in nervousness. They stared at each other’s orbs, which they have been doing for the past couple of minutes since they went inside the mansion, the silence dragging out.

“Let’s find hyu- AH!”

It was the sound of metal hitting the floor. Their eyes watch in horror as the utensils that were once scattered above the kitchen island, went flying down, hitting the porcelain tiles so loudly that Jaemin’s ears started hurting. This in turn made Renjun into a running mess, dragging the two boys with him outside the cursed room to nowhere in particular. Jaemin and Jeno are as agitated, their feet running faster with adrenaline, as they let their bodies get dragged with Renjun’s hold.

Maybe they shouldn’t have let Renjun drag them after all.

“Why in all places did you choose to run to the second floor?!” Jaemin shouts unconsciously. His hand is gripping his hair as he circles the room deliriously because it has been minutes since they took refugee in the solace of what seems like a bedroom, which was too big even for a master’s bedroom, that when they tried to get out of the room once they realized they were actually on the second floor where the banging was heard, it’s somehow locked.

“Well, you were the ones who followed me here!” Renjun snaps back, his teeth biting his lower lip so hard that the depressions became white.

“You dragged us here!”

“ _You_ took us here!”

“You two, shut up!”

Jeno broke their frantic trance, the boy still holding his camera, filming them. It somehow made Renjun’s cheeks flush in red as embarrassment takes over his calm, and it goes the same for Jaemin.

“Let’s calm down, okay? We’re kind of professionals at this kind of thing, so act like one. And no, I’m not mad.”

That made both Renjun and Jaemin let out a sigh they didn’t know they were holding. Somehow, Jeno has always been their peacemaker and they know how important it is to have Jeno with them for their relationship to be balanced out. The last thing they want from the boy is him getting angry, too afraid he might walk away from their lives.

Renjun turned to look away from Jaemin, but not before reaching for his hand as he squeezes it reassuringly, leaving a small pang of ache in Jaemin’s heart. It’s something they do to one another whenever they come into a clashing fit, and it’s an act, so endearing, that it assures the without words being conveyed.

“Okay, listen up. I have a plan.” Renjun says as he gathers himself to stand before his two best friends, taking out a planchette from his backpack.

*

“Injunnie, this is suicide!”

Jaemin shouts from his position. They were sitting on a circle, holding hand in hand, as the sounds of glasses continuously break around the room. Jaemin can feel the shaking of Renjun’s hand, clasped on Jaemin’s own. The shattering sounds eventually stopped but before the calm can even approach, a strong gush of wind hit the three of them, almost enough to lift them from the floor. The ouija board sitting at the center of their human circle isn’t affected nor the glass that has been constantly moving since they started hearing loud cries just outside the room. Their hold on to each other tightened once more when one moment there were loud screaming cries and then another, everything fell silent. Their eyes observed as the glass slowly dragged itself in swift motion from letter to letter.

“Let’s play.” Renjun reads out, sweat dripping down his forehead.

“Wh-what do you wan’t to… play?”

When the glass moved once again, and Renjun slowly read the words, the strings of curses coming out of Jaemin’s mouth was enough to make Jeno and Renjun’s eyes shut in disappointment.

“We can’t just play hide and seek with a fucking ghost in this fucking old ass mansion. _Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!_ We should have just called Chenle and Jisung, now we don’t even know where Donghyuck and Mark are!”

“Jaemin, stop fucking cursing, you’re making me more nervous and at this point I might just slap that mouth of yours if not for the fact that we can’t let go!” Renjun hisses at him.

“Guys…” Jeno huffs out, as the glass moves along the slick surface of the board once again.

_“On.. a co..unt.. of.. ten.. 1.. 2..”_

They didn’t let the glass finish its sentence until they were running away from the room, the door now unlocked, still holding into each other’s hand. They ran through the carpeted floor, past the the long hallway of closed doors. Their screams were screeching out through the aisle. It was intensified when a big chunk of rubber head came falling right in front of their faces, their feet dragging them as they turn to their right, away from the stairs where they originally planned on going.

“Why are we in a room again!” Jeno cries out, his breath ragged as he tries to calm his shaking legs. Renjun wasn’t doing as good, as he fills his lungs with big gaps of air that it makes Jaemin dizzy just by looking at him. They were panting heavily when the knob of the door they fortunately locked began to twist in a frantic manner.

No matter how they think about it, it wasn’t a good idea to hide themselves in the closet. Three is a tight fit, their limbs are tangled with each other’s and their faces are mere centimeters away, the air around them is mixing up in a weird way that makes Jaemin’s heart beat dangerously faster than how it’s already been doing in the past few hours. When they heard the door opening and footsteps approaching, they held them breathes for as long as they can and the only thing that they can do now is to pray to whoever is out there to just let them get away with this one ridiculous decision in their lives.

*

“It’s been like five minutes since the door closed, maybe we should-“

“NO. Jeno, that, whatever’s out there— wait, you’re still recording?”

Renjun’s eyes gaped at disbelief but the ridiculousness of Jeno’s actions made the mood a bit lighter which made the three of them relax and slump in a comfortable way. But comes with it is the sudden attack of their exhaustion resulting from all of what happened today.

“Injunnie,” Jaemin starts, taking the attention to himself.

“I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

“I shouldn’t have.. took you guys here.” Jaemin lowers his head down, knocking his forehead against Renjun’s own. They’re sticky _and_ dirty but, as of the moment, it really doesn’t matter.

“Take that back, I don’t want any apologies coming from you, Nana. To be honest, I’m kind of enjoying myself.” Renjun flashed a genuine saccharine smile, enough for Jaemin to replace the guilt with popping emotions he hasn’t really dwelled into. Jeno, who was keeping mum for a while let out an undistinguishable noise from his throat that it made Renjun snort back.

“Enjoying yourself get scared and play hide and seek with a ghost?” Jeno then said, earning a slap on his shoulders from Renjun.

After a few moments of stillness, the three of them are now breathing evenly, when all of a sudden, Jeno giggled, too sweet, that Jaemin can’t help but coo.

“What?” Renjun asks, his eyebrow raised but the obvious tugging on his lips makes him look endearingly cute.

Jeno raised one of his hands which was still intertwined with that of Renjun while Renjun’s other hand was intertwined with Jaemin’s own. A bubble of laughter started to spritz out of Renjun’s lips and even though Renjun tried to muffle it by biting on his lower lip, the melodic sound that came out of the boy’s lips is enough to take away all of Jaemin’s and probably Jeno’s fatigue, and for a bit of a time, they actually had forgotten that the three of them are still stuck on a closet inside a haunted mansion at wee hours in the night.

“Oh my god!”

Jaemin blurted out, suddenly letting go of Renjun’s hand on his own. He took out his phone and as he presses through the home button, his lips began to form an ‘o’.

“1 hour and 45 minutes left until your birthday, love!”

Jaemin blurted out, a big smile plastered on his face. He wasn’t expecting himself to say the pet name but that isn’t really the problem. They have been stuck in the mansion for nearly 5 hours!

“What? That’s not right, I’m pretty sure it hasn’t been at least an hour since we got here.”

Jeno, for the nth time, let out an incredulously high-pitched noise and it makes Jaemin stretch his ears from the sensation.

“Oh my god.” Renjun suddenly said, his mouth ajar. Jaemin and Jeno turned their heads on him, their eyes asking for him to continue.

“Are we perhaps… being manipulated?”

“Finally!”

Screams erupted as the three stumbled out of the closet, Renjun’s hand finding Jaemin’s own until they are again hand in hand. Jaemin fell with his face planted on the floor, but still managed to crawl away from the closet they were in a moment ago. Renjun and Jeno dragged him with them, and as they try to stand, their limbs fail them as they shake in intensity, their butts hitting the wooden floor. They were still screaming, their backs now stuck on a wall, a bit away from the closet when _someone_ walked out from it with slow dragging footsteps.

“Shh! Be quiet, they’ll hear you!”

*

“So, Kun,”

“Kun ge.”

“Kun ge _,_ where are we?”

Kun smiled, flashing his pearly whites. It’s somehow ironic how a ghost whose clothes are covered with mud and dried up blood looks heavenly and angelic. There’s a bit of black spots near his lips but it didn’t stop the familiar dents of dimples on his cheeks to stand out. Jaemin felt bad for throwing his shoe when Kun tried to reach out for them even though it just passed by the ghost like he wasn’t even there.

Kun hummed as he drags his hand to his chin, his eyes looking like he’s thinking deeply.

“You’re still in the mansion.” Kun said after a second, his smile never leaving his face.

“It’s just that, it’s playing with you.”

Kun might have noticed the hanging questions in the air when he continued to explain.

“Firstly, outsiders aren’t aloud in here. The moment you stepped inside the gates, that’s when the mansion started this game. Let’s just say it has its own life. I tried to stop you!”

Jaemin let out a gasp as he tracks back to the gentle tap he felt when they crossed the gates.

“That was you? Oh my god, I’m having goosebumps! Wait, were the footsteps also-“

“Yes, that was me too.” Kun said in an overly affectionate manner.

Truth be told, Jaemin had his suspicions but never did he imagine that it was an actual ghost. Renjun glared at him with pouty lips, jealous that Jaemin had an interaction with a ghost before himself, but nevertheless still fond. Kun told them about the mansion, how one of the family members who was then practicing witchcraft gave the mansion it’s own life to protect the family line back in the 18th century when there’s an ongoing hunt for witches and suspicions arose from the town people how the head of the Zhong family was rumored to be the leader of the circle.

“Was he?”

“No. It’s their middle son.”

Kun also mentioned how Chenle is part of the family line, the very reason why he hadn’t experienced any abnormalities when he first visited it. He’s also, apparently, free to invite guests but as long as he’s with them once they enter the premises. Kun saw him and Jisung make a mess in the kitchen and asked the three why they’re carrying a cake and hotpot ingredients.

“You’ve brought hotpot?!” Renjun squealed in excitement upon hearing the information, his eyes glittering. Jaemin and Jeno nodded in response as they gave him their most affectionate smile.

“It’s his birthday.” Jeno said, his finger poking Renjun’s cheek.

“Oh! Happy Birthday! Now I feel bad.”

“What do you mean?”

“Anyway! It’s getting really late, and your friends have been looking for the three of you for _hours._ You guys should go back.” Kun said, as he starts to levitate from his place, his body starting to to get opaque. Jaemin, Renjun and Jeno also stood up, exhaustion present on their features. They noticed how Kun was looking at their locked digits with a warm smile and they can’t help but blush in a shade of red.

“You guys are cute. Go back to the ouija board, and finish what you started. Don’t forget to say goodbye!” Kun said as he disappears from their sight, and the three slumps on their feet once the remnants of the ghosts are nowhere to be seen.

“Please tell me you got all that on record.” Renjun said, pointing the question towards Jeno.

“Of course.”

*

The trip back to the room where they left the ouija board was so quiet that Jaemin was afraid it’s all part of the mansion’s dirty tricks. They stumbled upon the decapitated rubber head from the hallway, thanking it quietly for making them run away from the stairs and into the room where they met Kun. If it wasn’t for the ghost, they would still be probably screaming their lungs out.

They made all the necessary rituals to close the ouija board and before they stood up, Renjun said his _goodbye_ to finish it. The glass moved from letter to letter, spelling its own, _goodbye_ and once the glass moved back to the center of the board, a strong gush of cold wind came by, knocking the glass down.

Finally, it’s done.

After a while, when they finally let go of each other’s hands, they heard familiar voices calling out their names just from the outside of the room. They stood up in a rush, too preoccupied on the thoughts of meeting their friends as they pushed the door open. Chenle came running towards them, his facial features full of worry. Falling behind him were Jisung, Donghyuck and Mark who looks as bad as that of Chenle.

“Where have you been?!” Chenle shouts but his voice was muffled on Jeno’s chest. Jisung came to Jaemin, crying his eyes out, while Donghyuck and Mark rushed to Renjun, Donghyuck squeezing the life out of him while Mark inspects them for injuries.

“Hyung! We were so worried!” Jisung managed to cry out, his eyes inflamed from crying and Jaemin feels so bad. He profusely apologized to the youngest, petting his hair until the boy stopped his hicks.

“You guys were gone for 4 hours!” Mark said, a bit angry on the tone but Jaemin was sure he’s just as worried as the rest, so they apologized again, promised that they’ll explain things once they got out of the mansion. It turns out that Donghyuck and Mark managed to meet up with Chenle and Jisung at the rooftop back when Donghyuck ran out for his life. Jaemin curses, thinking how they should’ve just followed them, but pressed the thought behind his mind. _Maybe it wasn’t all that bad._

“How about your party?” Chenle asked, his head slanting away from Jeno to look at Renjun with guilty eyes. Renjun smiled at him, reassuring him they’ll continue the party at his, Jeno, and Jaemin’s apartment. This made Chenle’s features brighten up, smiling small.

*

They walked away from the mansion, but not before taking all the food Chenle and Jisung prepared at the rooftop. It was a nice view, Jaemin thought. And the maknaes really outdone themselves with the decorations. The fairy lights look ethereal under the darkness of the sky, and the pink balloons scattered around the place gives the ambience a softer tone. It’s a waste, Jaemin thinks, as they drag their feet to where their van was parked. It was supposed to be a perfect surprise for their Renjun but look how the things turned out. He can’t help but chuckle on his own.

“Why are you laughing?” Renjun asked him by his side, his lips forming a smirk. He can feel Jeno’s face from his other side, a bit too close as his breath fan over Jaemin’s cheeks.

“Nothing. Happy Birthday, Junnie.” Jaemin smiles at him, his eyes a bit sad. “I’m sorry it turned out like this, we really didn’t expect anything to happen.”

Renjun laughed at that, his cheeks going high.

“What are you talking about, this is the best birthday ever!” Renjun said it with pride as he raises his eyebrows on both Jaemin and Jeno. “Thank you, for this. And for not letting go of my hands back when we’re playing hide and seek.”

It was Jaemin and Jeno’s turn to blush, their words in a jumbled mess as they try to explain themselves to Renjun who’s sporting a proud teasing grin.

“That’s because it’s necessary-“

“I didn’t noticed it, really-“

“I love you two, too.”

Jaemin may have to reconsider going back to the mansion if this is how Renjun’s going to act.


End file.
